The Name’s the Thing

A Sermon Preached by

The Rev. Paul Debenport

August 24, 2008

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Hear the Word of God from Matthew 16: 13—18:

Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”  And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, but others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”  Jesus said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”  Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the son of the living God.”  And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah!  For flesh and

blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven.  And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.”

The Word of the Lord.  Thanks be to God.

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            The name’s the thing.  Or, more precisely, the naming’s the thing.  Naming matters.  Parents take great care when selecting the names of their children—and everyone has an opinion about their selections.  Most of us are rather attached to our names, even proud of them, and take our responsibility for naming others quite seriously.

            But my big brother didn’t.  Paul Roger Mason Nichols Debenport—that’s what my brother wanted to name me [after his best friend at the time].  And why my parents gave their five year old a vote is beyond me, but, fortunately, they edited it down.  I probably wouldn’t have survived elementary school if they hadn’t.

            In the Bible, naming matters a lot, and the power to name is just that, a special power.  In Genesis 2, God brought every creature to Adam and gave Adam the power to name them.  So naming is an extension of creation itself, and, as with any act of creation, doing so contains and confers power.  Which is part of why individuals and groups of persons [especially sub-groups] claim the right to self-define, increasingly asserting the right to name themselves rather than to be named by others.  And respecting the names persons and groups give themselves is part of what it means to live in Christian community.  Yes, naming matters, for a lot of reasons, not the least of which is the peculiar relationship between one’s name and one’s sense of identity, the sense of who we really are.1.

            Today’s familiar Matthew passage is dominated by naming and renaming and the related issues of identity.  Most often the church has focused on the meaning of Jesus’ renaming Peter here, but that’s not what caught my attention this time.  Today, I am most interested in the meaning of the naming of Jesus.

            Jesus sets the tone by asking his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”

People say.  People were saying a lot of things about Jesus back then—John, Elijah, Jeremiah, most of the “biggies” of Israel’s spiritual past.  And ask around today, and you can’t help noticing that still people say a lot of things about Jesus.  They say it in classrooms and in Congress, on the Internet and the nightly news.  In just about any context you can imagine, people say all kinds of things about Jesus, because nearly everyone has an opinion.  He’s the King of Kings; he’s my personal savior; he’s a wise spiritual leader; he’s a liberal; he’s a conservative; he’ll forgive your sins; he’ll lead your revolution.  He’s alive; he’s dead; he is risen; he will come again.  People say Jesus is a lot of things.2.  But Jesus says to the disciples, “Who do you say that I am?”

            And this is the first thing that grabbed me in this passage this time:  rather than claiming his right to name himself, Jesus gives the disciples the power to name him.  And with this authority comes immense responsibility, both for us as individual disciples and for us as a congregation who bear his name—Christian.  By our words and our silences, by our actions and by our inactions, everywhere we are as individual disciples—at school, work, home, the beach, the bar, the barrio, and most overtly here together as a congregation—Jesus has given us the power of his creation, the power to name him.  To oversimplify, personally and collectively, are we exclusive or inclusive, judgmental or welcoming, discouraging or encouraging, hateful or loving, inattentive or attentive, and on and on.  Jesus still gives us the power to name him when he asks, “Who do you say that I am?”

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            Now, today’s text reveals that Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”   And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you Simon son of Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven.”

            This is the second revelation that grabbed me for this sermon.  For once Peter got it right, which is so refreshing and encouraging for us.  Often he didn’t get it right, but this time, he did.  Although “right” is probably not the “right” word for it.  He isn’t “right” because he has the textbook answer from the back of the theology book or even really understands the terms he’s using.  (The very next verses reveal that he doesn’t.) 

            No, Peter is “right” because he sets aside what people say and listens to what God is unfolding in his heart.  He allows God to reveal to him who Jesus is—and then he confesses it, probably surprising himself as much as Jesus.  To which Jesus exclaims, “Blessed are you, Simon!  No human being could have told you that!  You must really be listening!”

              For each of us, I think the moment comes—really several moments throughout our lives, moments when what people say about Jesus is no longer enough, when we can’t substitute what people say for what we say.  This is when we must listen closely to God—in word and action—speak up for ourselves, name him ourselves.

            Who do people say that the Son of Man is?  Interesting, perhaps even informative, but not really all that important.  The important question is:  Who do you say that he is?

Amen.